The French act Heavenly is now about to unleash their fourth studio album since their debut in 2000. Heavenly’s major musical inspiration comes from bands like Helloween and Gamma Ray, which is really obvious once you hear the album. Just like Helloween and Gamma Ray, Heavenly plays very melodic power metal with grand choruses and catchy tunes. This isn’t anything new, but it’s quite entertaining, that’s for sure.

VIRUS contains 9 songs and clocks in at 50 minutes, which would have been alright if it weren’t for the bland material. Sure, it’s all well-performed and arranged with catchy tunes and fun lyrics, but that’s about it. The songs are too alike and sometimes it’s hard to separate them. Heavenly hasn’t got anything overly remarkable about them. Another thing that doesn’t help the album is lead singer Ben Sotto’s screamy and high-pitched voice. He sings at the absolute top of his lungs throughout the entire album, which is very hard to listen to for a longer period of time. He really hurts your ears sometimes. The cover artwork of VIRUS makes you think of a death or thrash metal act, which doesn’t reflect what the band is about at all.

Even though I have played the album for quite a while, I can’t come up with many good things other than experienced musicians and a few good songs; that’s about it. If you’re a fan of the band and their older albums, I’m sure you’re not going to be disappointed with this one, but it’s not enough to keep a new buyer interested. There are so many bands today that do this so much better than Heavenly. It’s a good attempt with a few highlights, but also with many downsides. Killer tracks are “Blood on Fire”, “Virus”, “Spill Blood on Fire”, and “The Power And Fury”.